


A Sudden Outburst

by inhisownwords (salsownwords)



Category: The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Drabble, Fluff, Love, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:14:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24364867
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/salsownwords/pseuds/inhisownwords
Summary: And now he understood. Staring up at Peter Nureyev, at his pale skin that glowed in the light of the monitor, the waves of his raven hair, the smile lines he tried so desperately to hide that Juno suddenly felt compelled to press his lips to: Juno understood why people bothered getting married.
Relationships: Peter Nureyev/Juno Steel
Comments: 14
Kudos: 137





	A Sudden Outburst

He wasn’t ever going to do this again.

That’s what Juno Steel had told himself, anyway. A lady should only have to toss out one wedding dress in his life before he learned his lesson. And really, what purpose did marriage serve anyway? Weddings were for people who didn’t trust their partners enough to stay without being shackled to them. Frankly, Juno couldn’t think of anything  _ less _ romantic.

And then, Peter Nureyev changed things. As he so often did.

It didn’t happen all at once. The changes were so small, Juno hadn’t noticed them at first, not until they’d started to coalesce. Over time, he’d tentatively pried back his defenses and allowed Nureyev to see glimpses of him, beneath the bravado and sharp wit and deflections--chance encounters with the sides of himself even  _ he _ rarely visited these days. It was ugly sometimes. Hell, it was hostile sometimes, too. Old wounds were always the hardest to reopen.

Not once did Nureyev punish him for it. Juno repeatedly gave him chances to take advantage of his weak points, to exploit his vulnerabilities. Instead, Nureyev traced his scars with his lips. He helped him clean his wet wounds and dry his wet eyes. And he  _ thanked _ him for it, even as Juno bled his heart out into his lap and spat defensive words so heated they could light fires. Peter never once flinched away. 

And before he knew it, the Juno Steel that left Hyperion City wouldn’t recognize the Juno Steel that stood here now. Beside Peter Nureyev, in the common room of the Carte Blanche.

The two of them stood before the wall of windows that overlooked the vast, empty vacuum of space before them. No amount of time spent out here would dull the impressiveness of it. Juno could spend hours-- _ had _ spent hours, in fact--taking it all in. Losing count of the stars pin-pricking the velvety blackness, gazing at cloud formations over nearby planets until his eyes lost focus as his mind wandered.

But who could bother with space right now, with Nureyev standing right there? Juno stole a glance at him. Even in the dull light, he was practically glowing. Those two amber eyes drew Juno in, shining brighter than any star could ever hope to. If Peter caught him staring, he didn’t make it known, save for maybe the tiny smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Crossing his arms, Nureyev let out a small, contented sigh. “The coffee should be ready by now,” he said, turning his head towards Juno. “Do you want to grab a cup while I get the stream ready?”

The spell broken, Juno blinked a couple times. “Uh, yeah,” he mumbled.

Nureyev smirked knowingly at him before walking away, taking a seat on the couch. Juno awkwardly stepped into the kitchen and poured two mugs of coffee, fixing them the way he and Peter both liked automatically, his mind elsewhere.

Reflexively, he reached into his pocket for the thirtieth time that day. The ring was still there.

It wasn’t anything too special or flashy. Just a thinner, dark band made of tungsten and silver. But then again, the simplicity of it felt right to him. While Nureyev was partial to jewelry, he didn’t often wear gemstones unless he was playing a role, preferring to stick to just metal when he was at home. Anything with a stone would have felt more like Duke Rose, but that wasn’t the man Juno was about to ask to spend his life with.

Though, he couldn’t take full credit for that idea. Buddy was a very wise woman.

Juno ran his thumb over the metal for a second, reassuring himself that it was there. He’d been carrying this thing around his in pocket for weeks now. He should have known better than to buy the damn thing before coming up with a plan. Then again, who knew if he ever  _ would _ at this point? Nothing he could think of seemed to fit right. He’d taken to just keeping the ring on him in case a moment presented itself. Even if that meant constantly being on high alert. More so than he usually was, anyway.

Taking a breath to steady his nerves again, Juno took the mugs and made his way back to Nureyev. He handed Peter his drink, who nodded in thanks and held one arm open, creating a space for Juno to lay against him. Juno sat beside him, resting his head against Nureyev’s chest. Peter’s hand came to rest over Juno’s heart.

The two of them watched the stream in comfortable silence. Even that was new for Juno; how content he felt, just to be with another person, saying nothing at all. Having no need to fill the quiet, no compulsion to earn the right to be in someone’s presence by saying something smart or quick-witted. Being able to just exist with another person was a comfort he’d never known. Another gift in a long list of things Nureyev had given him, quite possibly without even realizing it.

Juno peered up at Peter through his eyelashes, taking in the sight of the man who had given him more than he deserved, but never demanded that he earn it. The man who held him accountable for his mistakes but never held them against him. Whose touch sent tremors through his body, whose lips lit him up like the galaxies spinning outside. Who smelled like home.

And now he understood. Staring up at Peter Nureyev, at his pale skin that glowed in the light of the monitor, the waves of his raven hair, the smile lines he tried so desperately to hide that Juno suddenly felt compelled to press his lips to: Juno understood why people bothered getting married. It wasn’t to posture and prove to the rest of the world that your relationship was stable, as if it were the world’s business at all. It was to prove to that  _ one person _ that they were worth any sacrifice it would take to stay by their side. Anything at all.

The words escaped Juno before he could think to stop them. “Marry me, Nureyev.”

Those words hung in the air for an eternity that ended in a second. Juno sat frozen in place, eye fixed on Peter, holding his breath.

Nureyev’s eyes grew wide, his lips parting but no sound coming out. Slowly, he tilted his head down to look at Juno, his expression a mix of shocked and amused, like he couldn’t believe this was happening but especially couldn’t believe it was happening  _ right now _ . “What did you just say?” he breathed.

And just like that, the suspension broke and everything hit Juno at once. Fear and embarrassment washed his face in heat as he scrambled to find the words to salvage this: “I-I mean, I just--I wasn’t planning on doing this  _ now _ \--not that I had a plan yet, I was going to--”

Suddenly, Peter’s hand was cupping his cheek, stunning him back into silence. He leaned his head down, closer to Juno’s, locking their gazes together. “Juno, say that again,” he said, a tinge of something in his voice that Juno had not heard in a long time: desperation. “Please.”

Juno swallowed hard and reached into his pocket, never taking his eye off Nureyev, and held up the ring. He took a shaky breath in. “Peter Nureyev. Will you marry me?”

An instant passed where neither of them so much as blinked. An instant was long enough for Juno to think of every reason Peter had to say “no.”

Then Nureyev brought his other hand to hold Juno’s jaw and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to Juno’s with enough force to knock the wind out of him. With that, all tension left Juno’s body, and all doubt left his mind. He returned the kiss in earnest, his free hand coming up to tangle itself in Nureyev’s hair. Peter kissed him again, his hands trembling against Juno’s face.

A moment later, Nureyev pulled away and Juno opened his eye, only to flinch in surprise. A tear fell down Peter’s face, then another as he let out a breathy laugh. Juno reached up to brush his cheek, his brow furrowed in concern. “What’s wrong? Are you alright?” he whispered.

Nureyev chuckled again, taking hold of Juno’s wrist to keep his hand in place against his jaw. A giant grin spread across his lips, flashing those foxes teeth. “Yes, Juno, more than,” he sniffled.

Juno’s face broke out in a smile. “So...is that a ‘yes,’ then?”

Peter pressed his forehead against Juno’s and laughed. “Yes, Juno.  _ Yes. _ ”

The two of them dissolved into one another again. There wasn’t a single thing Juno could say to explain the joy and relief he felt, so he’d have to show him. He kissed Nureyev like it was the last chance he’d get, and revelled in the fact that this was only the start of a lifetime’s worth of chances. And when they pulled away so Juno could slide the ring onto Nureyev’s finger, when he saw his eyes light up brighter than he’d ever seen them before, Juno Steel smiled in a way he hadn’t in years.


End file.
